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Lange was born in Mufulira, Northern Rhodesia (today Zambia), and raised in Durban, South Africa. His German mother came from a prosperous family, and his South African father was a mining engineer. Nicknamed "Mutt" at an early age, Lange grew up a fan of country music, in particular the singer Slim Whitman. While studying at Belfast High School in what is now Mpumalanga province, he started a band in which he played rhythm guitar and sang harmonies.

After his national service (1966–1967) he formed the band Sound Reason in 1969. In 1971, he started the group Hocus, recording one album and releasing five seven-inch singles.

In 1978, Lange wrote and produced Ipswich Town's FA Cup final single "Ipswich Ipswich Get That Goal", his connection with the club being due to their South Africa-born player Colin Viljoen. The song is derived from a previous recording "Give That Thang To Me" by Paul Jones (1977), with some parts rearranged and new lyrics.

After Hysteria, Lange bowed out of working with Def Leppard while their peak success with Pyromania.[3] He would return to work with them years later in a more limited role in 1999, co-writing three tracks for their album Euphoria. One of these songs, "Promises", was a Number 1 hit on the mainstream rock charts for the band.

Lange was once married to Stevie Vann and moved to England. The marriage broke down in the 1970s. While still married Lange started a five-year relationship with Northern Irish employee Oonagh O'Reilly.

After hearing Shania Twain's music, he got in touch with her and they spent many hours on the phone. They finally met six months after the initial contact and were married on 28 December 1993; because Lange is teetotal, they had non-alcoholic champagne at their wedding. Lange also had the song "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" performed as a sign of his dedication. In August 2001, their son Eja (pronounced "Asia") was born. On 15 May 2008, a spokesman for his employer Mercury Nashville announced that Twain and Lange were separating,[4] after Lange had an affair with Twain's best friend, Marie-Anne Thiebaud, with whom he reportedly later began a relationship.[5] Lange and Twain divorced in June 2010.